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LSU poised to take on Arkansas and 40 minutes of whatever the Razorbacks offer up

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LSU point guard Anthony Hickey has turned the ball over only 7 times in 200 SEC minutes, but he'll be put to a test by Arkansas' full-court pressure on Saturday.
(Hilary Scheinuk, NOLA.com | Times-Picayune)

You can call it fastest,
you can call it hell, you can call it whatever you want. One thing the LSU
players know and understand, though, as they brace for the challenge of facing
Arkansas is that for 40 minutes -- or however long it takes -- the Razorbacks are
going to be different than just about anybody else they face.

The Tigers and Hogs
collide at 4 p.m. Saturday at the PMAC (ESPNU) in a battle of teams anxious for
a win for very different reasons.

LSU (13-6, 4-3 SEC)
revitalized the idea of an NCAA Tournament berth by surging past No. 11-ranked Kentucky 87-82 on Tuesday night, the Tigers' first win against a ranked team this
season.

After grinding through
a trickier-than-it-seemed January slate in the SEC, now the Tigers arrive at
February's doorstep with only one league game against foes that has a better SEC
record than them -- at Kentucky (5-2) on Feb. 22.

So the opportunity for
a potential run toward more serious postseason consideration is right there at
LSU's fingertips.

Arkansas (13-7, 2-5) is
headed the other direction, with four losses in the last five games after
Missouri edged the Razorbacks 75-71 on Tuesday. More troublesome for the Hogs
is the notion of playing away from Fayetteville. In Mike Anderson's three years
back where he helped build a powerhouse, Arkansas is 3-27 away from home.

"We're going to be
ready for them for sure," said the Tigers' junior point guard, who will be
front and center against the Razorbacks' full-court press. "They're a team looking
for a little crack so they can slide on in - looking for a little chance to break
through.

"We can't let that
happen. This is an opportunity for us to start moving up and we have to make
sure we take advantage of it."

For that to happen, LSU
will have to handle a different level of pressure than it has seen this season.

No, this is not the
Arkansas of Nolan Richardson in the 1990s and earlier this century. None of 'The
Triplets' is walking through the PMAC doors.

But the Hogs do force
turnovers because they will pressure from the time LSU inbounds he ball.

Arkansas creates 18.2
turnovers a game (16.6 in SEC play) and essentially just pesters the opponent.

"If they're capable of
turning you over, getting steals, they get out in the open floor and they
really execute and score really quickly on the other end of the floor and they
can put a lot of pressure on you and rattle your team if you are not poised
under the pressure," Tigers coach Johnny Jones said.

Added
Hickey, "They've got a lot of length on the perimeter. They want to trap in the
corners. We've just got to stay away from the baseline and make smart plays. They
want to speed you up and that's what we want to do, too. We've just got to execute
and make the right play."

That
we part, as in plural -- more than one
guard -- is a key as well.

Hickey
will be the front man against the pressure, but he was quick to point out that
contending with a full-court assault is as mentally challenging as it is physically.

So he'll need help. And
that thrusts freshman Tim Quarterman into the spotlight.

Quarterman has shown
snapshots of improving throughout the season, and it's conceivable his 6-foot-5
frame could be an advantage when the smaller Arkansas guards look to trap.

"It helps, but sometimes it's hard to simulate
other team's presses because of their speed that you normally would get from
other people, their length, and the way they rotate out of their press," Jones
said.

"They keep coming, they have fresh guys do that on a consistent basis,
it's hard to simulate that so you have to make sure you are executing in the
spots and hope that your press-breaker can dominate their press defense and you
don't turn the ball over and are able to take care of it."

Which is something LSU has done better the last
four games.

The Tigers are averaging 13 turnovers a game in
league play and have no more than 13 in the last four games. Hickey has
given the ball away only 7 times in 200 SEC minutes, with 21 assists and 12
steals. Senior Andre Stringer has also been efficient with only 8 turnovers in
180 minutes, while Quarterman has 9 TOs in 81 minutes.

Those two might play a role, but it's Hickey who
will set the tone.

"There's going to be
shots for us there in the press," Hickey said. "We just have to take care of
the ball and push it when we can. We've just got to play our style."

LSU coach Johnny Jones: 'You want to try to beat the press with a pass, get the ball up the floor, especially if you can get it off and you have numbers on the other end.'Hilary Scheinuk, NOLA.com | Times-Picayune

"I think as a point guard, you have to have a
feel for it," Jones said. "You want to try to beat the press with a pass, get
the ball up the floor, especially if you can get it off and you have numbers on
the other end. But at the same time if you feel like you have them off-balance
and can attack or split it, he can do that as well if he feels like the pass is
covered, and if he can beat it with the dribble because of his speed. So I let
him really go with what he feels and I am hopeful that he makes the right
decisions out there."

This season, those
decisions come with a much different menu.

It's not just the Tigers'
guards who will play a role in beating the press. As Hickey alluded to, there
will be shots at the LSU end of the floor to be taken. Johnny O'Bryant is a
proven finisher, and he has plenty of company in Shavon Coleman, Jordan Mickey
and Jarell Martin.

Jarell MartinLSUSports.net

Of the four forwards,
Coleman and Martin are just as capable of helping in the backcourt as finishing
once the ball is past the time line.

"It helps to have bigs
who can bring the ball up the floor and break the press," Martin said. "If we
can handle the ball well, that takes the pressure off our guards and creates
mismatches."